The Social Edition is our weekly series which deep dives into luxury initiatives in China’s social media landscape. Every week, we highlight brand campaigns distributed on Chinese digital platforms — WeChat, Weibo, Tmall, Douyin, and beyond.
Our coverage spotlights global luxury brands, global beauty brands, and local Chinese brands. The latter gives insight into some of China’s most successful campaigns, which often come from local players, and are outside of the beauty and fashion space.
In this week’s roundup, we look at two campaigns, including Louis Vuitton's newly opened Maison in Chengdu and Prada's collaboration with four Chinese Olympics athletes.
Louis Vuitton Mounts a Tiger Tail at New Flagship Maison in Chengdu#
BRAND#
Louis Vuitton
CATEGORY
Luxury
PLATFORMS
Weibo, Xiaohongshu
MEDIUM#
Image, Short-Video
OVERVIEW#
On January 21, Louis Vuitton unveiled its Maison at Sino-Ocean Taikoo Li, Chengdu, the third Louis Vuitton Maison in Mainland China and its fourth store in the city. It integrates retail, cultural, and lifestyle spaces across two buildings and an open courtyard — a construction area of more than 2,000 square meters. The store features original artworks and furniture crafted by Chinese artists and designers to showcase the house’s commitment to local art and culture. Meanwhile, to celebrate the Year of the Tiger, the house presented a special art installation that features a giant, textured tiger tail at the storefront.
NETIZEN REACTION#
In just the five days since the store opened, the brand has collected over 4,000 UGC posts on Xiaohongshu. Users shared pictures of their visits to the Maison, particularly the giant art installation. Meanwhile, a ten-second video on Weibo featuring the tiger tail garnered 73,000 views and many congratulations from netizens on the new Chengdu store.
VERDICT#
Given that Chengdu has become the most significant city in southwest China for luxury brands betting on emerging markets, placing a third Mainland Maison there is a smart choice. More interestingly, the house chose to leverage the zodiac symbol for 2022 — the tiger — to communicate with local audiences instead of planning a grand opening ceremony. This approach strengthens the brand's connection to local culture, but it also distinguishes the Louis Vuitton Maison from regular retail spaces.
Prada Tailored SS22 Looks For Chinese Olympics Athletes#
BRAND#
Prada
CATEGORY#
Luxury
PLATFORMS#
Douyin, Weibo, WeChat, Xiaohongshu
MEDIUM#
Image, Short-Video
FEATURED TALENTS#
Gong Lijiao (1M Weibo Followers) | Li Zhixuan (291.5K) | Xiong Dunhan (1.8M) | Yang Shuyu (2.6M)
OVERVIEW#
Prada teamed up with Hung Huang, the “Oprah of China,” to create a short video showcasing body and beauty diversity. Hung, a Chinese fashion media veteran and key tastemaker, invited four acclaimed Chinese Olympic athletes — Gong Lijiao, Li Zhixuan, Xiong Dunhan, and Yang Shuyu — to participate in the project. Prada also tailored pieces from their Spring 2022 Collection for the athletes, who also shared their respective perspectives on fashion and beauty on the video.
NETIZEN REACTION#
The collaboration between Prada, Hung Huang, and the four athletes received positive feedback from netizens. Many appreciated how the campaign presented the beauty of power, as well as explored the boundaries of fashion. The video garnered over 20,000 likes on Douyin, while the campaign hashtag attracted more than 23 million views on Weibo in one day.
VERDICT#
Though Prada is not the first luxury house to partner with athletes, the campaign approached the sports boom in China with a distinct twist, which resonated with a wider audience beyond sports fans. As the creative director, Hung Huang, acknowledged on Weibo, there has been a limitation for campaign shooting as only models with standard body shapes can fit into samples loaned by brands. However, a dedicated dressing initiative like this Prada collaboration allowed for greater inclusivity and diversity to be presented.